Microtome.



W. L. PATTERSON.

MIGROTOME. APPLIUATION rILED`DBo.-'2'a', 1907.

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Patented Aug. 10, 1909.

W. L. PATTERSON. v,

MIonoToMB.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.28, 1907. I 930,686. Patented Aug. 1o, 1909.

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W. L. PATTERSON.

MIGROTOME.

APPLICATION FILED 13170.28, 1907.

Patented Aug. 10, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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attenua-1j *a munzw, a GRAHAM 00., PMoro-umocmuins, wAsnmarcN. u4 c UNiTED sTATEs PATENT ormoni WILLIAM L. PATTERSON, OF ROOHESTERNEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO BAUSOH & LOMB OPTICAL CO., OFVROCHESTER,.NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW Yonx, (No. 2.)

MIcRoToME.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM L. PATTER- SON, of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Microtomes; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description` vibrations and the working loose ofthe parts are reduced to a minimum.

Another object is to arrange the working parts so that they will be protected from liquids dripping from the object, thus insur ing a perfect working of the machine.

To these and other ends the invention. con` sists in certain improvements and combinations of parts all as will'be 'hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings: Figure l represents a plan view of a machine constructed in accordance with this invention. vFig.V 2 represents a front elevation of thesame machine. Fig. 8 represents a bottom view. Fig. 4 represents a section on line af-a Fig. 5, vthe knife and its holders being removed. Fig. 5 represents a section on line b-b Fig.y 4.

one of its holders and a portion of its frame; Fig. 7 represents a detail section of the object feeding mechanism, and Fig. 8- represents a section on line c-c Fig. 7.`

Referring more particularly to the drawings,`A indicates a main frame comprising` preferably two longitudinally extending pieces 1 connecting two end pieces 2 having supports 3, all of which maybe formed bya single casting. Supported on the main frame is a knife frame consisting in the-present in-` stance of a rectangular 'top 4 vand Vintegral supports 5 at the ends thereof bolted at' 6 to the main frame and seated in depressions 7 on the top of the main frame. The top of the knife frame is formed with longitudinal grooves 8 and transverse grooves 9, both of which are preferably of the shape of an in- Specicaton of Letters Patent.

ApplicationA filed December 28, 1907.

Patented Aug. 10, 1909.

Serial No. 408,436.

verted T in cross section, thus permitting the knife holders 8a to be shifted so that the knife 9a held by screws 9X against shoulders 9b thereon may be secured at great or small .anglesto the line of movement of the object -to be sliced, the knife holders being turnable on headed bolts 10 which enter the grooves and are drawn against the upper walls thereof by thumb nuts 11. Of course, the grooves may be replaced by any other means which will permit this adjustment of the knife on all sides of the frame.

- Arranged to travel beneath the knife is the object clamp which preferably comprises .a fixed jaw 12 and a movable jaw 13 guided on rods 14 connected by a cross piece 15 which with the fixed jaw and rods forms a `frame. This frame carries a pair of'trun;

nions 16 and 17 journaled on a frame 18,

the trunnion 17 being hollow and internallyl threaded to receive an adjusting screw 19 journaled in the movable jaw and having a thumb piece 20 hinged so that it may drop lbelow the top portion of the knife frame, a `brake shoe 21 operated by a thumb screw l22being arranged to engage a trunnion 17 and to hold the trunnion against turning. The frame 18 before mentioned has pivots 23 on opposite sides thereof connecting it to a suitable carrier in order that the object clamp may turn about an axis at right angles to the direction of reciprocation of the clamp, while ,clamp screw 24 working through a curved slot 25 in the carrier and engaging the carrier and the frame 18 serves .itohold the latter against turning.

Fig. 6 represents a section through the knife,

The clamp carrier is preferably composed of two relatively adjustable members, the upper member 26 being formed with a receptacle 27 arranged beneath the clamp in order to catch any drippings from the object; and the lower members 28 having `guide faces'29 movable vertically on guide aces on the guide member 30 of a reciprocatory carriage to be hereinafter described,

vther adjustment'between the upper and the 'lower members of the carrier being yerably accomplished by aheaded bolt 31 on prefi the knife. other 'direction roller 49 moves away from surface of the pieces l and having the guide member secured thereto, thesupporting plate being held aoainst lateraly movement by guides 34- coperating with downwardly con verging guide faces integral with the sides of the pieces l.

The reciprocation ofthe clamp o r object` holder carriage is effected preferably by means of a crank arm 36 secured to a shaft 37 and to a pitman 38 which is pivoted to the carriage at a point in a horizoiital plane Ybelow the 'planeof the crank shaft 37 in shoi'vinwhich comprises a nut (to-be hereinafter described) arranged on the clamp nca'rrier and a screw 42 working therein and intermittently rotated by a toothed wheel 4S', the wheel being journaled on and below a shield or disk 44 secured to the lower portionH of the guide member 30. lVith the wheel 43 a spring pressed pawl lever 45 engages, the latter being mounted on an arm 46 pivvoted to the under surface of the shield "andheld against alstop 47 by a coil spring 48 also secured to the under side of the shield'. rlhe end of lever arm 46 carries a roller or stud 49k adapted to cooperate with an adjustable stop 50 preferably in the form of a rotary cam secured to the under surface of a' thumbdisk 51 which is journaled oii a hanger 52 extending Vfrom the side of the mainframe. rEhe thumb disk is provided with a. scale on its upper face and an index or pointer 53 cooperates with the scale to determine'the position of the stop, the divisions of Athe scalerepresenting microns. Villien rthe reciprocatoiy carriage is moved the step-by-step feeding mechanism moves Vtherewith and the roller 49 cooperates with the stop 50 at one end of the movement, causing the pawl lever 45 to engage the teeth of the wheel 4*.and rotate the latter, thus effecting a movement of the carrier toward As the carriage moves in the the stop 50 and the spring 48 causes the dog torride over the teeth of wheel 'In order to obtain a i'ough adjustment of the object toward the knife, the nut before mentioned is divided or split into two members 54 and 55 having a common pivot 5G and' operating extensions 57 'between which isfaiian'ged a helical spring 5S tending to move the members together about the screw f2. lVhen the extensions 5T are pressed to release the screw, 42, a spring pressed plunger 58a or other locking device is piojected between them on the opposite side of their pivot and locks them in a separated position, and they are releasedv from this position by a trip preferably iii the form of a lever 59 having upward extensions pivoted at GO to the lower member 2S of the carrier. @ne end of the trip engages the plunger 58 while the other end is provided with an upwardly extending linger piece arranged between the extensions 57, a depression of the linger piece serving to elevate the spring pressed latch or plunger 5S,

In operation, the knife is set at the proper angle to the direction of movement of the object to be sliced, Y being arranged at a slight angle when the material is brittle and a great angle when the material is tenacious; and the object is secured in the clamp which is then adjusted at an angle, to cut a desired section or sections of the object. The rough adjusting device is operated to release the nut from the feed screw and to elevate the carrier so that the object is iii proper position. Upon the `rotation of the drive shaft `the object will be reciprocated and after each cutting ,will be automatically fed upwardly I a distance equal to the thickness ofthe slice to be cut, the slices being .removed from the knife after each cutting.

A microtome constructed iii accordance vith this invention is very strong and durable, as all danger of the parts working loose is practically obviated. The knife is supported at both ends on a frame which is rigid with the frame on which. the object carriage moves, and if the parts are properly adjusted, there is no chanceifor the re- Y lation of the object and the knife being accidentally changed. Further,vthe horizontal arrangement of the stationary knife frame pei-mits of its being. supported at both ends of the movement of the object carriage and in this manner all vibrations are reduced to i a minimum.

l claim as my invention: 1. In a microtoine, the combination with a main frame having horizontal guides, of a Vs ably supported stationary knife, acarthereon, a crank shaft, a large oblique toothed gear on the crank shaft, meshing with the small gear, and a pitnian connected to the crank shaft and to the carriage.

2. In a iiiicrotoiiie, the combination with a mam frame embodying a pair kof longi tudinally extending pieces, of a horizontally arranged knife supported above said loiigi-y tudinally extending pieces, a carriageJ arranged between and guided on saidlongitudinally extending pieces, an object carrier vertically adjustable on the carriage, an object clamp arranged on the carrier above the longitudinally extending pieces, feeding mechanism for moving the object carrier toward the knife, arranged below the longitudinally extending pieces, a crankshaft journaled on one of the longitudinally eX- tending pieces, a crank arm arranged thereon between said pieces, and a pitman connecting the crank arm with the carriage.

3. In a microtome, the combination with a main frame and a suitably-supported horizontally-arranged knife, of a reciprocatory carriage guided on the main frame, means for reciprocating the carriage, an object carrier vertically adjustable o n the carriage, a disk shaped shield supported on the carriage, a toothed disk arranged beneath and journaled on the shield, a screw secured to the shield and turning in the object carrier, a pawl for actuating the toothed disk, and a stop foractuating the pawl.

4. In a microtome, the combination with a knife and an object holder, one of which reciprocates relatively to the other, of a stepby-step feeding mechanism for feeding the object holder to the knife after each reciprocation embodying a split nut and a screw, a spring for maintaining the members of the nut in engagement with the screw, a device for locking said members out of engagement with the screw, and a trip for operating said locking device.

5. In a microtome, the combination with a knife and an object holder, one of which reciprocates relatively to the other, ofa stepby-step feeding mechanism for feeding the object holder to the knife after each reciprocation embodying a screw and a split nut having its members pivoted and provided with operating extensions, a locking device adapted to enter between the members on the side of the pivot opposite the extensions, and a trip pivoted between its ends, one of which controls the lockin device and the other of which is arrange in proximity to the extensions.

WILLIAM L. PATTERSON. Witnesses:

HENRY C. THON, I-I. M. SMITH. 

